


Just a Summer Thing... Or Maybe Not!

by queeniesye



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Endless Summer 2020, F/M, Fluff, Friendship to Love, Lots and lots of fluff!, One Shot Collection, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-19
Updated: 2020-07-19
Packaged: 2021-03-04 23:47:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,278
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25374889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queeniesye/pseuds/queeniesye
Summary: Avalanche Nest's frequent customer, Cloud Strife has left barmaid Tifa Lockhart wondering over why their relationship has turned awkward. Spending a night as partners in crime revealed that there's more into it!
Relationships: A little mention of Zack Fair/Aerith Gainsborough, Tifa Lockhart/Cloud Strife
Comments: 8
Kudos: 27





	Just a Summer Thing... Or Maybe Not!

**Author's Note:**

> My entry for Endless Summer 2020, Day 5 Prompt - "Wouldn't it be nice" by The Beach Boys.

Welcoming the presence of the sun, the misty blue sky of dawn gradually blended into a yellowish hue. With the arrival of daylight, signs of life began to take form in Costa Del Sol. Along the cobblestone streets, little boys and girls in bathing suits and slippers could be seen running towards the beach, carrying plastic balls and floats. Cafés that had unknowingly became meeting points for working people started their businesses early to serve their customers crowding at the patios. On the beach, women in bikinis and men in shorts were setting up their resting areas, or nets for all-day long volleyball game sessions.

Avalanche Nest, a small bar located in between a convenience store and a pharmacy, was not exempted from the early morning hours of hustle and bustle. Some of its staff were already busy dealing with suppliers and setting up tables and chairs, while others were still getting ready for the day in their rooms located on the upper floor of the two-storey building. In one of these rooms, Tifa was sitting on a seat cushion underneath wide-open wooden panel windows, reading a book with her back leaning against stacks of pillows, unbothered by the noises coming from downstairs.

Approaching footsteps could soon be heard thumping against the wooden floors of the corridors and stopped right outside of Tifa’s room. A few knocks on the door were made before it swung open, revealing Aerith in a pink floral bikini set at the doorway. “Are you still not ready yet?”

“Give me juuuuust a few more minutes. I need to finish this chapter,” Tifa answered, without looking up from her book.

Aerith placed her hands on her hips, “The theories of environmental justice can wait. Barret cannot.”

Engrossed in her reading, Tifa offered no reply to Aerith’s remarks.

“Fine… just a few more minutes. We’ll be waiting for you downstairs.”

It was five minutes after Aerith left when Tifa managed to finish reading the chapter she was on. At the page that marked the beginning of the next chapter, she clipped a magnetic shuriken-shaped bookmark gifted by her cousin, Yuffie. The thought of Yuffie and the recent texts Tifa received from her made her sigh. Yuffie was set with her decision not to visit Costa Del Sol like she often did in previous midsummers, opting to return to Wutai instead to help out with her dad’s tourist business.

 _It’s going to be a little… lonely this year, I guess_ , Tifa thought.

“Well, there’s no use dwelling on it,” she said, persuading herself and finally rising up from the cushion seat.

Checking her reflection from the vanity mirror, Tifa applied finishing touches to her look: combing cowlicks away and tying a small cream towel that barely covered her dark blue bikini bottom around her waist that she could use to wipe her hands on later.

Scaling down the stairs, Tifa could hear the familiar rackets coming from the bar growing louder. The bossa nova version of Vincent Valentine’s recently released best-selling album – a favourite of Barret’s – was blaring from the jukebox. Marlene was having her breakfast, and talking with Barret about a bedtime storybook they recently purchased and read. Wedge and Biggs were somewhere in the corner, laughing and playing darts, while Jessie, who were preparing tissues and dining utensils on the tables kept urging them to help her out. Tifa could also hear Aerith talking with someone… definitely not a staff at the bar, but someone who had just recently became a frequent customer.

 _Ah, that means he is here too_ …

When she reached the final landing of the stairs, her eyes instantly darted towards the man of her concern – the quiet and reserved Cloud Strife. Cloud was the usual companion to the man Aerith was talking to, the flamboyant Zack Fair.

“Well… well… look who finally decided to show up,” Zack spoke when he saw her.

Getting behind the bar counters, Tifa responded with a feigned smile, “Good morning to you too, Zack.”

“Cloud here was waiting for you!”

“Knock it off…” Cloud hissed under his breath, sending both Zack and Aerith into fits of giggles.

Though, Cloud’s hostility did not amuse Tifa.

 _Jeez… seems like someone woke up at the wrong side of his bed_ , a thought she chose to keep to herself.

Despite her disagreements with his behaviour, Tifa maintained her professional barmaid treatment of him. The sight of his empty glass prompted her to ask, “Do you… want another glass of Corel’s Mojito?”

Cloud gave her a glance and quickly averted his gaze, “Uhm… sure.”

Tifa knew he would not refuse her offer because Corel’s Mojito is his favourite but she quietly wished that he would be more appreciative that she was aware.

 _He was a lot friendlier in the beginning…_ Tifa mused to herself.

Zack first came to the bar about a month ago while searching for a cheap place to eat at. He introduced himself as a guy who just quit the army and decided to have a summer retreat in the coastal town before going back to actively look for another profession.

And he was not doing it alone, he claimed. A friend was supposed to come around too once his resignation from the army and the ensuing paperwork were approved. Two days later, Cloud came into the picture. He arrived, all dressed in leather, with a Highwind motorbike ride that attracted a lot of attention because who, among motorbike enthusiasts – which ninety-five percent of Costa Del Sol residents were a part of – would not buzz over Highwind motorbikes?

The entirely leather outfit was definitely not a smart choice on his part because he ended up sweating badly and cranky under the sweltering summer heat – or so Tifa heard from his rants to Zack. Tifa remembered, with a tickled heart, the way his deep blue eyes continued to squint after taking off his sunglasses inside Avalanche Nest as she offered him the Cosmo Canyon – his first drink in the bar.

Since then, Zack and Cloud started frequenting Avalanche Nest; Zack because he clearly has a thing for Aerith, and Cloud because he just tags along. Initially, Cloud was _at least_ , able to hold several conversations with Tifa. However, overtime, things just grew awkward between them and making conversations with him became harder.

As Tifa served the Corel Mojito to Cloud, she wondered, _have I ever said something wrong to him?_

* * *

The time on Wedge’s wristwatch was five minutes past midnight, and he speedily flipped the signboard hanging on the bar’s glass door to ‘close’. Barret sat at one of the tables, counting down numbers for the day’s sales. Everyone heard the sound of him clicking on the calculator keys, and then his sigh of frustration.

“Another bad business day? That’s three months in a row now,” Biggs who was sweeping the floor pitched in.

“What do you expect when we have gentrifiers like Shinra in the neighbourhood?!” Barret screeched, slamming the paper he had on his hand on the table and taking a large gulp out of his beer bottle.

Zack raised an eyebrow at the mention of the Shinra name, “Shinra? What have they done now?”

Hovering over the sink and applying dishwasher soap on plates, mugs and utensils for Aerith to wash off was Jessie, who answered, “Just two months before you guys came, they finished building the Shinra Hotel, complete with the Rufus S. Casino and the Shinra Gastropub right behind the beach. Businesses here are suffering since we’re a couple of miles _away_ from the beach.”

Zack shook his head, “They have taken over the oil industry, the army, and our public transportations and now they’re moving to the food industry too?”

“Not just the food industry. They’re creating a record label too and trying to sign up Vincent Valentine as their major star!” reported Wedge, who just came in from emptying the bins.

“I heard they’re trying to buy off Cid Highwind’s business too…” Cloud added.

In between sips of his beer, Barret cussed, “These motherfuckers are way too greedy for their own good.”

“So… are we still going to do that _thing_ that we were planning to do?” Aerith asked in a high tone, so as to avoid from letting the running tap water from drowning her voice.

Tifa’s eyes widened, “Are you guys serious?”

Her reaction stirred curiosity in Zack, “What’s this _thing_ you’re referring to?”

“Pasting posters promoting our bar on public bulletin boards and walls,” Aerith replied.

Zack twitched the corner of his lips, “That’s it…?”

“…Illegally,” Barret continued with a word that was supposed to end Aerith’s sentence.

“Illegally?” now the issue has piqued Cloud’s interest.

“Shinra has imposed a law that prohibits the promotion of other pubs, bars, hotels and casinos within 1200 miles of the Shinra Hotel… for monopoly purposes,” Biggs replied grudgingly.

Zack threw his arms up in the air, “Of course! Why did I expect anything less from Shinra?”

Barret who finished his beer stood up and declared, “We’ll do it.”

The room came to a standstill as everyone paused whatever it was that they were doing.

“We’ll do it tomorrow night after closing down the bar,” Barret stated further.

Biggs proposed, “Cloud will rent a bike for those designated at spots closer to outside the prohibited areas, while Wedge and I’ll have the cars ready to drive those designated at spots far within the prohibited areas.”

“Wait, why am I forced into-” Cloud protested.

But Aerith interjected, “Everyone has their own tasks, Cloud! I’ll be on the lookout for authorities with Zack.”

“So that leaves me, Tifa and Jessie with the pasting of the posters,” Barret asserted.

“Barret… I didn’t agree to this. We’ve had enough trouble sabotaging their food supplies two months ago,” Tifa voiced out, somewhat pleading to be left out from the unlawful operation.

Barret shrugged, “It’s alright, Tifa. I’ll make sure you’re closer to outside the prohibited areas, so it’s easier for you to escape.”

Tifa was still hesitant but she knew, at that point, coaxing Barret into changing his mind is impossible.

* * *

Dressed in a pair of baggy camo pants and worn out dark grey sweatshirt with its hood up to cover her brown hair, Tifa sat quietly behind Cloud as he peddled the bike. She watched as the spiky ends of his hair swayed in the wind and pondered over ways to keep them down.

“How on Gaia were they able to stay up like that even with gravity?” Tifa mumbled a question.

Cloud heard her, “Huh? Did you say something?”

“You could have picked a less flashy outfit,” Tifa answered – not exactly what she had in mind, but still an issue that was bothering her too.

He annoyed the entire crew when he showed up to Avalanche Nest dressed in an unbuttoned floral printed cyan blue short-sleeved shirt and white shorts – obviously with the intention of defying Barret’s orders to dress in attires with darker colours so they would draw less attention.

“I figured since I have no say in my participation with this whole operation, I might as well annoy everyone else,” Cloud replied, almost too smugly.

Tifa chuckled, “You’re pretty spiteful, huh!”

Cloud had no comeback but she saw the corners of his lips curving.

 _He’s smiling!_ She rejoiced. Somehow – for a reason that she quite not understand, effectively making him smile made her happy.

When they reached the first public bulletin board, he told her as she was passing by him, “Be careful… I’ll watch out for your back.”

She smiled, “I will. And thanks, Cloud.”

Three posters were retrieved out of her backpack, put up and stapled onto the bulletin board by her, a process she repeated on the other following boards, unless larger or smaller spaces permitted more or less posters to be pasted.

Tifa knew, the bigger the target place, the higher the risk of getting caught. Yet, when Cloud called out for her to come back while she was pasting the second poster on her first wall, she still panicked.

“Shit!” She was frantic, as she hurriedly ran back to him with her supplies almost spilling out of the space in between her arms.

As soon as she hopped onto the bike, Cloud sped forward, peddling with all his might. From a distance, Tifa could perceive the headlights of a black car with a license plate that only Shinra could own, heading towards their direction.

“No no no no no… they’re here! Cloud, do you know where you’re heading to?!”

“Yeah, I think so! Aerith told us to go to a person… a person named Elmyra’s place!”

“And you know where that is?!”

“Give me the directions!”

Drivers of the car finally caught sight of them. A bald man with sunglasses peeped his head out of the front passenger seat window and demanded through a megaphone, “YOU, THERE! STOP RIGHT NOW!”

“Uh-oh! Umm… do you know where Johnny’s Villa is?!”

After a while, it dawned on her that Cloud had only been in the town for a month and chastised herself, _of course he has no clue where Johnny’s place is, Tifa!_

“DAMN IT. You know what, never mind. Let me _manually_ navigate you!”

“Actually, I do! I do know where Johnny’s Villa is!”

 _Huh? How did he know?_ Tifa was baffled, but she had no time to muse about it.

“Ok, so Johnny’s Villa is on the left side of the junction we’re approaching! So Elmyra’s is on the far end of the right side!”

“Got it! But I’ll take us through the shortcut!”

“The shortcut?! You mean through the tunnel?! But isn’t the hill leading downwards to the tunnel a little too steep?! We might end up crashing!”

“But that’s the only way for the car not to follow us! So hold onto me now!”

Just like what he instructed her to do, Tifa wrapped her arms around Cloud’s waist and held onto him tight. She watched Cloud turned around a corner and skilfully climbed the bike over a road’s metal barrier, then quickly closed her eyes so she did not have to witness whatever lies ahead of them. When it felt like their bodies could be thrown in air by the strong impact of the bike speeding downwards on the hill, she buried her face on his back to muffle her screams.

The bike made a hard screeching sound from its brakes as it landed perfectly – and surprisingly – on solid ground. Without wasting time, Cloud sped forward so the bike could enter the tunnel and obscure them from the views of those in pursuit of them.

“It’s… fine now,” she heard Cloud reassuring her as he was slowing down.

When she raised her head, everything was pitch black, except for the light coming from Cloud’s phone that was guiding their way. As they rode through the tunnel in silence, she thought of the chaos they hardly heeded in a bid to escape their pursuers: the way her hair was flinging wildly in the air because her hood came down, Cloud peddling until one of his slippers almost came off of his foot, and the way they were screaming at each other in sheer panic…

She tittered.

“…What is it?” Cloud asked.

“We must have looked really ridiculous!”

* * *

“I’ll let you kids have the upper deck. Make yourselves at home,” Elmyra said, as she was setting a tray of beer cans, bottled waters, and a bowl filled with blocks of sliced cold fruits on the glass table between the woven chairs where Tifa and Cloud were sitting on.

Delighted with Elmyra’s hospitality, Tifa thanked her, “Thanks, auntie.”

“Anything for my baby girl and her friends!” Elmyra chimed, before closing the door behind her.

Tifa observed in amazement as Cloud took one bottle of water and guzzled it empty.

“…you sure are thirsty.”

“Aren’t you?” Cloud countered, putting aside the now empty bottle on the floor.

She took a can of beer, cracked it open and took one large gulp out of it, “A little.”

With the can still in one hand, she leaned her back and her head onto the chair, so she could gaze at the sky. It was beautiful – bright with twinkling stars.

“You know… you’re a pretty nice guy.”

“…You just figured that out?”

Cloud sounded quite hurt, but Tifa had no interest in glossing her words, “Yeah, ‘cause you can be quite grumpy. So I didn’t think that you would be nice.”

Cloud did not answer.

“Actually, you were pretty nice to me during the early days of our get-togethers. What happened?”

“…Sorry.”

“What are you apologizing for?” Tifa was content with his apology, but it was not exactly what she wanted out of him.

“The sky… it was the same as that night.”

“Oh, you’re changing the subject now?”

When she turned her head to look at Cloud, she found him already staring at her with a face as though he was waiting for her to say something that he wanted to hear. 

“…Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked, now blushing under his intense scrutiny.

He turned his head down, and rubbed the back of his neck, “So… you don’t remember, huh.”

For some reason, his gesture of uneasiness reminded her of someone she knew from a distant past…

 _Who might that be…?_ She wondered.

The face of that _someone_ flashed onto her mind, almost like a lightbulb had lit up in her brain, “Wait a minute… you’re that boy with a blonde ponytail!”

She kept quiet for a while, lost in her recollections until she resumed, “And… we made a promise that night.”

Cloud clearly did not want to look at her, now that she remembered it all. He kept his eyes on the sky, “Yeah so… I realized that you’re the girl I made a promise to… umm… marry back when we were twelve because I was leaving town to train in the army at Junon. And now I just… overthink about how to talk with you properly without messing up.”

“…messing up in what way?”

Cloud sat up straight and looked at her earnestly as he professed, “I… like you, Tifa. I understand if you don’t believe me because it’s only been a month since Zack and I came to this town but… I really do.”

He paused to swallow hard, and carried on, “Then again, I also don’t want you think that I only like you because I’m… hung up on that promise we made.”

Tifa had to blink several times, overwhelmed by the new arrays of information and feelings that she was receiving from Cloud. It took a couple of minutes for her to gather her thoughts, 'til she was ready to reply, “We were twelve, Cloud. I get it. I wouldn’t hold it against you.”

Cloud rubbed the back of his neck again, “Sorry… I tend to just overthink about these things.”

She guffawed, “I’m glad that it isn’t because you just _don’t_ like me!”

“How could I?!”

His reaction made her laugh again.

“…also, I’m sorry I asked Johnny about you, since he’s your ex.”

Her smile disappeared, “Wait WHAT-”

“And I also found out that Rufus Shinra is your ex too.”

Tifa rolled her eyes, “PLEASE, don’t remind me.”

“Sorry… I just wanted to find out… about you.”

“You know you can just… ask?”

Cloud nodded. He had nothing to refute against her point.

The air was now stuffy and they both could feel it. Something had to be done to cut through the tension. Cloud cleared his throat, “Then… to make it up to you… I’ll spend the rest of the summer getting to know you.”

Tifa finally smiled again, charmed by his effort. “I would love that!”

* * *

The alphabets lining the pages of her book danced in her eyes, but nothing of substance registered into her brain. Her mind kept wandering to the fact that there was only a week left until September, which means Zack… and Cloud, will be leaving to Midgar to look for work. She heaved out a heavy sigh, probably the eighth one for that day.

“I heard that!” Aerith yelled, walking towards her room.

She appeared at the doorway, with her arms crossed against her chest.

“Thinking of Cloud?”

Tifa closed her book, “Maybe… yeah.”

“Ask him to stay here, then…”

Tifa shook her head, “He’s determined to look for work in the big city.”

“You know… Zack decided to stay. He found full-time work as a lifeguard at the beach. Maybe… he can help change Cloud’s mind?”

The idea was tempting but… Tifa refused to become the source that will hold Cloud back. “…No, I doubt that.”

Aerith sighed. She chose not to push further, “Alright then. Don’t forget that we have his farewell party tonight by the beach.”

Tifa wanted to come just to see Cloud, but her heart felt heavy at the thought of it too.

* * *

It was dark and there were no lights at the beach. Only the sound of the sea waves and her eyes discerning a person sitting near a fire pit, who she knew was Cloud through the spiky ends of his hair, made her brave enough to stay around. Carrying a medium-sized blanket over one of her shoulders, she took off her sandals, and began trudging through the cold sands towards the fire pit.

“Hey,” she greeted Cloud, on her arrival.

He smiled, “Hey there.”

“I brought us a blanket because it will get a little cold.”

Taking out a blanket from his bag and showing it to her, he chuckled, “Me too!”

It made her giggle, “Then, there’s plenty of blankets for us all, so we don’t need to fight over them.”

Sitting beside him, Tifa started taking boxes of meals that she prepared from the bar out of her bag. Cloud was scrolling through his phone, and she heard it vibrating and briefly ringing now and then, signs that he was receiving text messages.

With one hand cupping his chin, he told her, “Apparently… the others won’t be able to make it.”

“Huh? But I’ve prepared so much food.”

“…It’s ok. I’ll take some home for Zack and me to eat tomorrow,” Cloud said, brushing the back of his neck with his hand, a habit – Tifa learned, that he often did out of feelings of shyness, or general discomfort that she had grown to adore.

She passed him one of the meal boxes with a smile, ““Well, I’m glad that you would.”

Staring into the distance in between munches of food, a thought crossed her mind, “They’re doing this… deliberately.”

Cloud scoffed, “No kidding. This sounds like a Zack kind of thing. He asked me to bring his guitar along… I had my suspicions. Think he was expecting me to serenade you or something with it.”

Tifa halted, “You’re not going to?”

“Do you want me to?” Cloud returned.

They stared at each other, until they erupted into barely audible tee-hees meant to be shared between the two of them alone.

With their stomachs now full, they decided to put out the fire so they could watch the night sky. 

Tifa put forth a request to him, “Can I… lean against you?”

She saw him slightly blushed, yet he still beckoned her to, “Yeah… of course.”

Cloud had his arms around her as she rested her back against him, and she held onto his hands. Her blanket was wrapped around his back, and his on her legs.

“The summer is… coming to an end,” he muttered.

Her eyes watered, “Yeah…”

Then she felt the gentle kiss Cloud planted on her forehead, “I’m glad that we… got to meet again.”

She did not offer him any words of reply, for fear that she might start crying.

“…Tifa, come with me to Midgar.”

“Huh?” Shocked, she turned around to look at him.

“Come and live with me in Midgar, Tifa.”

“But… what about Barret and the others?”

“We’ll talk to them… right now, I want to know if you’re willing to come with me.”

Tifa was speechless.

“I’ll help you set up the bar that you’ve always wanted to start… and let’s figure out a side business together too.”

“Are you… serious, Cloud?”

He nodded, “Yeah. I… I just want to be with you. That’s all that I could think about now.”

“I- I don’t know what to say, Cloud.”

“Then maybe… maybe someday, we’ll return to Nibelheim and start our own family there.”

Tifa chortled, _Cloud is really serious about this!_

“Ok, let’s think about that somewhere in the near future!”

Cloud let out an embarrassed laughter but she could tell that he was glad that she was putting his proposition into consideration, “Yeah, let’s.”

She tenderly tightened her grip around his hands, “To answer your initial question… yes, yes… I’ll come with you to Midgar. We’ll talk with Barret and the others about it.”

Once her final word was said, she looked up to witness the way his face crumbled – his deep blue eyes turning glassy by his tears and his mouth trembling.

Tifa chuckled, “Oh no… you’re going to cry.”

He sniffed and laughed, “Yeah… yeah, I am!”

They held on and gave one another long affectionate smiles, until he gently pulled her into a hug. She heard him sniffing and held back her laughter.

“I love you, Tifa,” it was this murmured statement of his that made her sob too.

The stars, who witnessed the promise that they made to each other some eight years ago, were once again witnesses as she affirmed to him, “Yeah… I love you too, Cloud.”


End file.
